Small towns. Big heroes!

During World War II, men from Minnesota’s smallest towns gave their lives for our country. Several were awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross, Silver Star, or Bronze Star. All received the award no one wanted: the Purple Heart. Little Minnesota in World War II, by Jill A. Johnson and Deane L. Johnson, honors 140 brave men from the smallest rural towns. From John Emery (who died December 7, 1941, on board the USS Arizona) to Herman Thelander (who was lost in the Bermuda Triangle, a mystery unsolved to this day), this unique book allows you to experience the war through personal accounts of the men and their families. Photos from the war, scans of actual letters, journal excerpts, and family memories create a one-of-a-kind book that brings history to life with stories from Pearl Harbor, the Pacific, the Invasion of Normandy, and beyond, and that combines local history with World War II nostalgia.